Richard51

[quote user="Stan Streason"]  Point 2  Negative goodwill in accounts is actually the opposite of what was posted earlier.  [/quote] Sorry I meant 'less' and thought I'd typed 'less' - just shows I should reread before I hit post! [:)] Mrs R51

In the banking sector there are a couple of key factors that are critical to marketing decisions to change pricing structures and product ranges: Churn v Customer lethargy - this is the number of customer who will always move to a better deal v those who will stay even if the price increases.  This churn / lethargy factor depends on a number of things including the complexity involved in switching product (current accounts will always have a lower churn than a credit card for example), the increase in price, age of customer.  In the above, Britline offers a current account (perceived as more difficult to switch), customers are largely older (retirees) who tend to be more lethargic (resistant to change) and they have the additional 'stickiness' of the language barrier. LTV (Life Time Value) - LTV is the money that can be made from a customer over the customer's lifetime.  Younger (preferably potential professional i.e. high earning customers) are preferable to older customers.  The younger group, particularly university students, will usually be offered better deals than the older age group.  Again, retirees in France would be perceived to be a lower value customer base using LTV measures than young customers. (Re negative goodwill - this arises on a business acquisition when the amount paid for the business is *less* than the fair value of it's aggregate net assets.  It can arise from brand perception but there are other reasons why negative goodwill arises.) Mrs R51 Edited to correct typo - thanks to Stan for pointing it out :)

[quote user="Cerise"] Here in the SW there has always been a largish NF following but the endemic racism seems to be getting worse and worse. Yesterday in my stint at the library I sat through and anti-immigrant rant by several of the good ladies of our village and when I tried to protest was given to understand that it was the likes of me and my wishy washy anglo saxon ideas that was causing the country to fall apart. I was informed that the majority of immigrants were such that they could NEVER be assimilated. The violence and unpleasantness of it by a bunch of middle aged middle class elderly ladies really took me aback![/quote] I've recently heard similar, Cerise - viz why don't the immigrants (in this case Brits) sod off back to the UK and buy a house in Wales instead.  That they are all here to avoid NHS waiting lists, they push up house prices, trade only with English, don't learn the language, don't pay taxes but are a drain on the French, don't mix other than a "'Bonjour' and a stupid grin'"....  It was pretty vitriolic stuff.  The swing to the extreme right across Western Europe is pretty worrying - and I think France is no exception - particularly as the economic climate worsens and people look for scape goats.... Mrs R51

Val - that is exactly what I was meaning [:)].  @Nick 'Ex-pat' or immigrant? [;-)] Mrs R51

We opened our account with BP before we got to France.  In fact before we bought our house as we arranged our mortgage through them.  We find it very convenient to call into our local branch and speak face to face and the staff are all very pleasant and helpful.  We have our buildings insurance with BP and the staff were very courteous and efficient on the two occasions when we had to claim - providing us with the claim forms, detailed explanations and then checking our completed forms to ensure we hadn't missed anything. Mrs R51

Usually French banks charge extra for internet / phone banking - not less.  Maybe we just don't understand what all big fuss is about because we change our bank regularly.  It isn't as difficult as it used to be as all direct debits etc are transferred automatically at the expense of the new bank.  We have switched current account three times in the last four years - the last time we changed was just a month ago. Mrs R51

Sid - unless I read the fees incorrectly, CA Britline customer fees are lower than those charged by BP - so presumably the additional costs are being picked up by other Credit Agricole customers? Regardless of fee structure, I do find it a little surprising that several people here have been in France for ten years plus but still feel they need an English speaking bank service.  If they didn't need the service - they'd just switch bank.  That's being blunt not sniffy [;-)] Mrs R51

I don't think it's 'sniffy' - CA have a separate telephone number and staff to handle enquiries and accounts in English.  Presumably this has to come out of the profits of the bank from all it's other customers - regardless of how long the service has been running? Market forces dictate that if you want a 'special' service then you will have to pay for it.  Banking in France is expensive even if you have a standard French account so CA Britline account holders are not unique in having to pay fees. http://www.britline.com/pdf/principal_banking_fees_january_2012.pdf http://www.sud.banquepopulaire.fr/magazine/Tarifs/documents/tarifs-part-actuels.pdf

Exactly, Frederick - it wasn't 'A land without a people for a people without a land'.  The land was occupied, quite peacefully, then the ethnic cleansing,  forced evacuation and land grab started...with the explicit support of the West Returning to the topic of the thread, the current wave of organised Islamophobia across the US and the EU is very reminiscent of 1930s anti-Semitism.  Personally, I find the parallels very disturbing. Mrs R51

Why shouldn't they charge extra??  Presumably they need to employ extra staff, have a separate phone line etc....  Everyone in the UK seems to complain about the cost of providing translation services for 'foreigners' who 'refuse to learn English' but then when they move to France they expect to get the service provided to them (as foreigners) for free?  I don't get it? Mrs R51

[quote user="just john "] Doesn't Israel have reason for its stance? [/quote] Greed for more and more land???

[quote user="woolybanana"]Had they been members of the national Socialst party, preaching anti-Jewish propaganda, then we would all immediately have wished them removed. [/quote] Exactly - if anyone says anything that even hints at criticism of Jews / Israel, then there is righteous outrage and indignation - even though we have Israel committing serial war crimes with blatant disregard for human rights.  It seems that Muslims are the 21st century's 1930s Jewry.  Islamophobia and hatred in Europe has become 'de rigueur'. Mrs R51

Carrefour isn't renowned for it's ethics: http://www.just-food.com/news/carrefour-denies-abusive-supplier-contracts_id118572.aspx - Guilty of oppressive contracts with suppliers http://www.inminds.com/boycott-delta-galil.html - Along with the French supermarket, Auchan, it trades with businesses operating in the illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank (businesses which also exploit local workers.) Mrs R51

If you already have your two singles then this might be of use: http://www.outofeden.co.uk/.Quick-Link~2999.htm.  I think they also sell the bedlinens etc that fit the linked beds. Mrs R51

EmilyA  - I wish there was a 'like' button on here :o).  I totally agree.  The one thing I hate is the 'I'm all right Jack attitude'....viz if you have MS, RA or are poor - tough sh1t. Mrs R51

I believe France are in breach of EU disability discrimination legislation with their current rules (Article 13 of the European Treaty, in particular).  I think 'the dwarf' is banking on disabled people being too poor or having too small a voice to challenge the position he has taken. Mrs R51

North Staffordshire, RH. Mrs R51

Maybe it's the area Idun?  There have been negligible NHS dentist vacancies in our area for years.  We hadn't had an NHS dentist for 5 years - my parents tipped us off to our current dentist a year ago as it was accepting NHS patients.  It took <4 weeks for all available NHS slots to go. Mrs R51

The problem re dentists is an issue in the UK.  It has been virtually impossible to get an NHS dentist for many years so many many people haven't bothered with dental treatment for a long time.  I have friends and family who haven't seen a dentist for more than 10 years. On the subject of healthcare.  Whilst the acute care in the NHS is fantastic (as R51 will testify after a recent emergency aortic endarterectomy) the chronic care remains abysmal. I was supposed to be having an ankle fusion (which I have waited 3 years for) - until I found out that they planned to discharge me 4 hours after the surgery (recommended hospital stay is 2+ days).  My post op anticoagulant treatment (I've had previous DVTs and PEs) was a bag of preloaded injections so I can do it myself!  Given my prior experience was a misdiagnosis of DVT by the post op clinic, a subsequent rendez vous with the crash team, a spell on high dependency and my family being informed my death could be imminent - I am opting to keep the dodgy ankle TYVM. Mrs R51

[quote user="Braco"] [quote user="pachapapa"]superior civilisations have moved forward to humane methods of slaughter;[/quote] While I detest all religions and associated practices I do take issue with delusional inferior civilisations comments. [/quote] Totally agree Braco, that sort of racist comment is both unpleasant and unnecessary. Mrs R51

I don't think Einstein was so thrilled with the Zionist movement, Chris. Mrs R51

This is a very interesting report on humane killing: http://www.daff.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0019/1370332/animal-welfare-livestock-slaughter.pdf The report found that ritual (i.e. halal / kosher) killing methods can be as humane (in terms of the physiological affects of circulatory and neurological shock in eliminating pain etc) for some animals as the use of percussive stunning.  The animals where this is the case are the smaller livestock e.g. chickens, sheep and goats.  Ritual slaughter is less humane for large animals due to the relative brain size and the thicker hide. (I imagine that geography and habitat of the Middle East meant that relatively few cows were eaten when these rules were established.) I think it's a general problem that, over the years, the raising of the live stock has become separated  from it's consumption.  Meat is seen as something that is bought ready wrapped from supermarkets, making it easier to distance yourself, psychologically, from the realities of the prerequisite slaughter.  I imagine that centuries ago (and I think still the case for more remote and rural communities) the animal being slaughtered would have been raised by those eating it.  This gives a far greater desire to ensure a humane kill.  As an aside, the article points out that the preparatory period is as significant as the actual killing (or stun to stick period) in terms of the distress to the animal.  I have certainly heard of modern slaughter houses that are less than satisfactory in this regard (and have also seen the inhumane multi attempt, blunt knife domestic / hunt kills). The article discusses supplementary measures that can be used alongside traditional slaughter methods to reduce the stress to the animal without rendering the carcass non kosher etc.  Thus there is no reason why ritual killing cannot also be humane.  Maybe if we all took a more personal interest in where our food comes from then we would have more humane slaughtering whether the meat is halal, kosher or not? Mrs R51

The previous flight add ons didn't used to bother me as the screenscraper sites always showed the final price - so you started out with a reasonable comparison.  Now Ryanair has blocked screenscrapers from accessing it's timetables etc., made it extremely difficult to look at the flight schedules and prices on it's own site (you can no longer see whether there is even a flight on a particular day never mind the pre add on price), and kept kicking off you the site so you have to keep inputting Captcha data I have given up.  It is just too cumbersome, time consuming and damn irritating to go though all the hoops. Also, having used Easyjet and Jet2 a few times now, we find them so much more pleasant and flexible (viz no weight limit of Easyjet cabin baggage.) Mrs R51

Well his wife wasn't very bright ;)  Talk about shooting yourself in the foot! Mrs R51

Papachapa, the evidence they gave was in court, under oath - unlike that given by the Huhnes which was on a NIP notice.  It was also in connection with a particularly brutal murder and not a traffic offence. Mrs R51